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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27826150">Papery Woes</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/smlash/pseuds/smlash'>smlash</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Paper Mario: The Origami King (Video Game)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Gen, Grieving over characters' deaths, No Dialogue, This is more of a reflection from Mario's POV since Mario deserves to have emotions, spoilers for PM: TOK</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 19:02:35</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,421</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27826150</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/smlash/pseuds/smlash</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Mario reflects on the friends he's made during his latest adventure.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>20</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Papery Woes</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I wrote this in July but didn't post it until now, lol.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The drive home was long and quiet. Mario usually enjoyed taking in the view of the serene environment when he was a passenger on Luigi’s car. He usually would focus on the nature around him, appreciating the beauty in the world that is untouched by any evil forces. He stares, but he feels empty. He can’t admire the tranquil world around him at the moment, the past events still clouding his thoughts.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He’s glad that the world is back in order now. Mario is sure that the companions that accommodated him on his latest adventure would also be relieved that everything is restored to its former glory. He sighs softly to himself. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Adventure.</span>
  </em>
  <span> Adventures were supposed to be magnificent, unparalleled. They were supposed to spark joy and adrenaline to fuel you to move forward. Yet, this one seemed to have brought him down.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The fear and panic that origami caused the paper thin citizens earlier seemed to have vanished. It's almost as if none of the events of the past few weeks have occurred.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Mario recounts his horrifying encounters with origami. Of being greeted by a cold and ominous figure instead of the warm and welcoming princess. Of hearing excited voices turn into ones of anguish as their bodies get disfigured into something reminiscent, yet almost unrecognizable, of their original forms. Of that one goomba that just wanted to see Toad Town but was never able to. Of, well, many experiences. They were simply too much to count.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But, despite all of that, he knows that not all origami was bad. There was Olivia.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Mario wonders how Olivia would’ve felt if she was still here. He wanted to know how she’d react to the Origami Festival. He wanted to see her face bright up once again. See that childish joy that she was filled to the brim with and watch her get excited about every little thing present. He missed her.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She was a great friend. Olivia had a pure heart. In the end, she decided to save everyone. Even if that cost her her own life. She put everyone else’s lives and happiness above her own.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She’s gone forever now. Mario reminisces everything they did together while she was alive. He watched her laugh, he watched her cry, he watched her learn about the world. He enjoyed her wittiness and wonder of the world around her. The time she had was short, painfully short. Her sacrifice was devastating to him, she had so much more to do but is unable to do any of those things anymore.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Mario has gone through many losses before. Olivia isn’t the first friend he’s lost, and she certainly won’t be the last. Despite this, the pain that comes with a loss of a friend never becomes easier to deal with.</span>
  <span></span><br/>
<span><br/>
</span>
  <span>He still hasn’t gotten over Bobby. The Bomb-Omb was a brave one, a loyal one, a kind one. He did everything he could for his friends. He was not afraid to go, he never was really. All bomb-ombs are aware of their fate. They were soldiers, made to die in battle and never meant to live long lives. Bobby’s sacrifice was a heroic one. He gave his life for his friend, Olivia, who he didn’t even know for a long time. Yet, he left a large impact on both Olivia and Mario. They had a lot of good moments together, the three of them. They had a very fun dynamic. They instantly clicked together.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Mario was unaware of the choice his newly non-amnesiac friend was making before it was too late. There were signs, but Mario didn’t notice them. He regrets not paying more attention to Bobby’s words or the way he looked bittersweet about everything. Mario only noticed that Bobby was planning to light his fuse and blow himself up once it was already over. He remembers running as fast as he could to try to stop him, but his friend was already gone.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He was disappointed in himself for not doing anything to prevent Bobby from dying that day. He was glad to see Olivia saved from that boulder, but he couldn’t let any words out when Olivia asked where their missing bomb-omb friend was.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He didn’t even need to say anything. Olivia figured out what happened, she wasn’t clueless to the idea of death. She was heartbroken about what happened. Mario wished that he kept himself more composed and was able to comfort her better during her destress. He was supposed to be strong, but it was difficult when the memory of Bobby was still fresh on his mind at that time.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Strangely, the spirit of Bobby came and gave him words that were surprisingly wise to motivate him to help Olivia. The spirit seemed so much like Bobby was when he was alive.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Then the two found a new companion when going after the Yellow Streamer. He went by the name Professor Toad, and he sure was a strange fellow. He had a certain charisma about himself that felt good to be around. Like most Toads, he was afraid to be around fights, but he was brave enough to not cower away and stay by their side.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Professor Toad was really helpful to them. Mario doesn’t think that he and Olivia would’ve been able to get to the Yellow Streamer without his support. He’s glad that he remained unharmed in the end, and he didn’t want to risk losing another friend, so he didn’t ask him to follow them.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They also met Kamek and Bowser Jr. Well, Mario already knew those two for a long time, but Olivia got to meet them and she considered them to be her friends. Mario decided to set his differences with them aside to not cause any unwanted tension.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He actually thought that they weren’t as bad as he usually thought they were after being with them for a while. Sure, they may have ran away without warning him and Olivia a few times in order to save themselves. But, they never betrayed their trust, and Kamek’s intuition was really reliable and he did not once lie to him about what path he thought it was best for them to take.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Bowser Jr and Olivia also got along really well and could’ve been really good friends if they got to know each other better. They both had a sense for adventure and fun.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Mario felt melancholy when he and Olivia sat on a bench for the last time on their way to stopping Olly’s terrorizing. He enjoyed the times he and Olivia just sat down to talk and rest for a bit shortly before continuing wherever they had to go. They seemed to heal whatever bruises Mario had from his previous battles and allowed him to appreciate the good things around him. Yet, this last one felt like it was the end of something. It was the end of an era that will never happen again. Mario didn’t know why he felt somber already, as if he was missing something that he will never have again.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A part of Mario knew that there was no way he was going to be able to save the world without losing someone. But he still had hope that everything would turn out okay.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But nothing ever turns out the way he wanted to. There always was a price to pay, someone always had to suffer.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Olivia used her wish to save them all. To restore the papery figures who were folded beyond recognition back to their normal, flat selves. Thus, causing Olivia and her brother, Olly, to no longer exist. Those two were never flat paper, they were always folded, so the wish undone them from existence.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Mario wishes he could cry. He wishes that he wasn’t made of paper and lived in one of those other worlds with solid people because they didn’t have to deal with these types of problems.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Mario wanted to let the world know about his friends, about everyone he cares about. He wants to mourn for them properly and be able to reconcile with the fact that none of them will ever come back.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But Mario keeps his head down. The ride is almost over. Mario sees his and Luigi’s house in his line of vision.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The journey was a long one. But Mario can’t afford to think too much about it. It’s all in the past now. Now it’s time to rest and look forward to what’s next to come.</span>
</p>
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